PEACE LIKE A RIVER

PEACE LIKE A RIVER by Leif Enger

GREEN LIGHT with CAUTION

AGES: ADULT

Peace Like a River is one of those books that's just so beautifully written. I would liken it to taking a little bit of Wendell Berry and adding it To Kill a Mockingbird. There's a rich warmness that fills my soul as the words roll off the pages. It's like eating warm bread pudding with caramel sauce on the perfect, fall day with my flannels and jeans on. Pure perfection.

Reuben Land is an 11-year-old boy who lives in the heart of the Midwest. Despite struggling with asthma and the loss of his mother, he has an idyllic childhood enjoying adventures with his older brother, Davy, and younger sister, Swede. When his family becomes a target for revenge and Swede is taken, Davy takes matters in his own hands. Now, he's on the run due to being controversially charged with murder. Reuben, his father, and Swede set out on a cross-country journey to find Davy before the marshal does. The joy, the struggle, and the journey leap off the pages into reality before the eyes of the reader. Peace Like a River will have you cheering, weeping, and begging that things will come out alright in the end.

I have to laugh a bit about this book. It sat in my TBR pile for a couple of years. I picked it up on two occasions and tried to start it, but I just couldn't get going. This time I picked it up, and I couldn't put it down.

HEADS UP - An attempted rape occurs, but it is stopped. The book never clearly comes out and says if Swede was molested when she was taken or not. She does have some bruising on her stomach.